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A Vegetarian Thanksgiving, Even for Carnivores

For the past three weeks, The New York Times’s Well blog has been collecting holiday vegetarian and vegan recipes from an all-star team of chefs and food writers. The haul has been mouthwatering: among other things, crisp low-fat zucchini cakes; avocado and grapefruit salad; honey-roasted acorn squash; chestnut and apple casserole; and a surprisingly easy chocolate-pumpkin bread pudding made with coconut milk instead of dairy products.

To nonvegetarians, Thanksgiving without turkey may sound like heresy. But shifting your focus from the bird to the rest of the meal can have a surprising effect on both your eating habits and the creativity of your cooking.

“It makes for good eating to reconsider and create dishes that let vegetables play a major role,” said Michael Anthony, executive chef of Gramercy Tavern in New York City.

He has created a vegetarian tasting menu at his restaurant — but not, he emphasized, to attract vegetarians.

“It’s not a way to pull a niche market into the restaurant, nor is it designed to be an escape from regular food,” Mr. Anthony said. “It’s meant to be a celebration of vegetables, and a great snapshot of what’s available in the farmers’ market and what’s growing in family farms around our area.”

Interest in vegetarian cooking is surging, even among those who eat meat. A study published by Vegetarian Times in 2008 found that 3 percent of American adults, or 7.3 million people, are vegetarians, including about a million who follow a vegan diet, eating no eggs, milk, cheese or other animal products. But about 10 percent, or 22.8 million people, say they are trying to eat less meat and increase their consumption of fruits, vegetables and grains.

EatingWell magazine plans a vegetarian cookbook for the spring, said Jessie Price, its deputy food editor. “Our readers keep saying, ‘Give us more vegetarian recipes,’ ” she said. “And it’s not just vegetarians. It’s people who eat meat who want to have more meals each week that are vegetarian.”

Many Americans are still not eating enough vegetables. This fall, the Centers for Disease Control and Prevention said that only 26 percent of the nation’s adults ate vegetables three or more times a day. A separate report from NPD Group, a market research consultant, found that four out of five American meals did not include vegetables.

The cookbook writer Joan Nathan says the problem is that many home chefs can’t imagine creating an interesting meal without putting meat in the middle of the plate.

Ms. Nathan said that she was still planning to serve turkey this Thanksgiving, but that focusing on the side dishes can make for more creative cooking. “The sides are where you can take risks,” she told me.

Among Ms. Nathan’s vegetarian holiday recipes are an apple-parsnip soup, a baked-squash “cassolita” with caramelized onions, and an Alsatian pear kugel with prunes.

The vegan chef Chloe Coscarelli of Los Angeles and most of her family have had a turkey-free Thanksgiving for the past 10 years. Every fall, she and her mother experiment with new meat-free dishes and work to “veganize” some of the traditional family favorites.

“My family decided it wouldn’t make Thanksgiving any better tasting to have turkey on the table,” said Ms. Coscarelli, whose holiday recipes include maple-roasted brussels sprouts and portobello mushrooms filled with savory lentil-cashew stuffing. “I have served an all-vegan Thanksgiving to the most diehard carnivores, and no one misses the meat.”

Although I’m not a vegetarian, I stopped eating turkey two years ago, mostly because it’s not a meat I enjoy preparing or eating. But that small decision has also changed the way I cook and eat during the fall and winter holiday food season.

Last week I returned from a shopping trip with more than a week’s worth of food. Except for a single package of chicken breasts, my bags were filled mostly with produce and grains. So far, my daughter and I have feasted on a delicious skillet mac-and-cheese dish packed with broccoli, onions and mushrooms; roasted brussels sprouts; a caramelized onion tart; and parsnip-and-apple soup. We still have plans to make an Indian-spiced sweet-and-sour butternut squash; zucchini boats with herbed ricotta; and an unusual buckwheat-and-black-kale dish created by Mr. Anthony. The chicken is now in the freezer because I haven’t gotten around to cooking with it.

Thank you Ms. Parker-Pope! This series has really been something to look forward to and I wish it could continue. But, I can’t complain, in just three weeks I’ve amassed menu ideas for T-day, Christmas, and News Year’s Brunch!!! I have to say, Chloe Cascarelli’s recipes are the one’s I am most excited about, but they were all appreciated. I just didn’t have the enthusiasm to dig through my cookbooks for new menu ideas this year, but my beloved New York Times has prepared me for a season of delicious vegan feasts!

I’ve absolutely loved this column over the past few weeks. All of the recipes have sounded amazing, and the photography has been stunning. Unlike some, I couldn’t imagine a dinner without a star vegetable shining through. It over-joys me that so many others are finding this to be true for them too, vegetarian or not. “Portobello mushrooms filled with savory lentil-cashew stuffing” or even roasted brussel sprouts with a caramelized onion tart, how could you feel like you’re missing something with dishes like these.

Thanks for this series. It will change my Thanksgiving for the better. Would you share your skillet mac-and-cheese recipe?
~Mary Ann

FROM TPP — It’s in the series. Here’s the link. My daughter was skeptical of the mushrooms but she helped me make it and ended up loving it. we skipped the last step (the oven part) We were quite happy with the way it turned out just on top of the stove…So good… It calls for shredded Parmesan which technicallly isn’t vegetarian because it contains rennet so you can substitute another hard cheese or veg Parm.

For our first vegetarian Thanksgiving, we shall be going the Quorn Turkey Roast route. Non-meat centerpiece for my wife and I while the rest of the family carnivores devour a turkey. Win-win for everyone except perhaps the bird.

Thanks for highlighting the turkey is overrated on the Thanksgiving table. I was raised vegetarian and did not eat meat until I was about 21. I do eat a lot of meat now (I am 27) but I find turkey on the Thanksgiving table to be too overpowering and even lazy. Since Americans now tend to unfortunately make meat the centerpiece of every meal, night after night they should instead focus more on traditional comfort foods as well as unique additions on a day that should celebrate real cooking and not just a turkey on the middle of the table.

On time in college I had a high school friend come over for Thanksgiving dinner and he forgot my parents were vegetarian. He later shared with me that only towards the very end did he realize there was no turkey coming (and the predicament he was in!) but once he accepted it he said it was actually one of the best Thanksgiving dinners he had ever had and still talks about it to this day.

After 30 years as a vegetarian the idea of Thanksgiving dinners has always filled me with dread and images of the great turkey holocaust. I am grateful to hear about more humane ways to celebrate our most cherished national holiday.

“Many Americans are still not eating enough vegetables. This fall, the Centers for Disease Control and Prevention said that only 26 percent of the nation’s adults ate vegetables three or more times a day. A separate report from NPD Group, a market research consultant, found that four out of five American meals did not include vegetables.”

Who eats vegetables three of more times a day? Assuming we are using the normal definition of vegetable, being the part of a plant that is eaten, other than a sweet fruit or seed. If this is the CDC recommendations then it is a rediculous one, with no supporting evidence.

Most countries recommend 250 grams of vegetable a day or three servings (three cups) a day. It does not matter if you do this in one or several meals.

I don’t get the vegan thing. What is wrong with eating eggs, cheese, milk and even honey? Does it hurt the bees to make honey and does it hurt the bees when humans reach in to gather honey? Does it hurt the chicken when we gather her eggs? I don’t get it? Perhaps some one could do a column on this. l

I want to thank you so much for both promoting a vegan/vegetarian thanksgiving, and for providing so many inspiring recipes to enable this to happen!

My mouth was watering from the very first day. I must admit that last year I went to a fully vegan Thanksgiving potluck, and I was so impressed by the amazing flavor of the breadth of vegan dishes. There were some mock turkey options there, which were ok, but by far the sides were what kept me going back to the buffet table over and over again.

I can’t wait to try some of these new ideas, especially the tempeh dish!!

Thanks again! With inspiration like this, more people will realize how doable healthy, environmentally-friendly and compassionate eating can be!

Thanks for the ideas, some of these recipes sound delicious. Part of the problem with trying to eat more vegetables is not knowing how to fix them, and the other issue is the time involved in prepping the veg. Then a few hours after a few hours, I’m hungry again – doesn’t happen when there’s meat on the table.

To commenter #11, I, for one, eat vegetables 3 or more times a day. Of course, I’m vegan and have been for the past 3 years. Vegetarian for many years prior to that. It’s not hard to do, really, if you let go of your ideas of what breakfast, lunch, dinner are “supposed” to be. I find a brown rice bowl with some leftover roasted vegetables a perfectly acceptable and quite filling breakfast. Focusing on the vegetables opens you up to spices and other food traditions. It really does make life more interesting, and that, coupled with the health benefits makes it all worthwhile.

After being vegan for a year and doing some research, I can tell you that vegans tend to miss out on a lot — like cancer, heart disease, obesity.

In terms of national awareness, I think the sun is about to come up on this one. It isn’t “normal” to have cancer in your 50s, a heart attack in your 60s, Read the science: T Colin Campbell’s “The China Study,” Caldwell Esselstyn’s “Prevent and Reverse Heart Disease.”

Let’s see…eat steak and die a painful, ugly death, or eat Tofurkey and live to hike Kilimanjaro..let me think…..

TPP, the thing that touched me the most in this article was your brief description of how you are cooking all these recipes with your daughter.

It sounds as though you have a great mother-daughter relationship. Cooking together was something my mother and I never did. She never wanted me (or anyone else) around the kitchen while she was there, and I can’t blame her for that – many people feel possessive of the kitchen. But it is great to hear that you and your daughter are bonding over these recipes.

Vegetarian Thanksgiving dishes have become such a fad that the real break from tradition would be for a publication to run a feature on turkey. The idea that vegetarianism is something holy in and of itself — something to strive for in a world that implicitly denigrates meat-eaters — has become standard. For those of us not morally superior enough to eschew meat — well, go ahead and eat it, but be sure not to enjoy it much. It’s time to realize that, while vegetarian dishes may be part of a healthy diet, there is nothing inherently healthy about not eating meat. A meal loaded with carbs and fat can be just as unhealthy as one featuring turkey. Health is often achieved by striving for balance, which has little to do with whether a chicken breast or turkey sandwich is anathema.

Toast bread cubes in oven until crunchy.
Marinate tofu in sherry and soy sauce for 1 hour. Saute onion and celery in oil in large pot. When onions are translucent add mushrooms, marjoram, thyme and water. Cover and cook until mushrooms are cooked approximately 10 minutes.
In a separate frying pan fry tofu pieces until crunchy. When crunchy add to onion/mushroom mixture. Also add to the mixture the marinade from the tofu. Then, at the end, add the bread cubes, pecans and lemon.
This is really good and goes well with mashed potatoes, cranberries, squash, vegetarian gravy, pumpkin pie and whipped cream.

But, I would posit that there is a far more widespread explanation: self-aggradizement — ‘I don’t eat meat because I am a more caring person than others.’ A better human than most people. Ergo, to be concise it’s often far more to due mainly for showing off and self-aggradizement.

In fact. people are animals who are designed to eat both meat and plant substances. Those who avoid red meat run the risk of blood anomolies.

Yes, each culture decides how it will treat animals — well or as objects — poorly. One society’s prized pet is another’s significant food supply. Roll the dice.

The real problem is that (metaphorical) ‘nature’ or God randomly (actully via evolution) created a world where predators of other animals ruled. So, if all people in the worldstopped eating animals (meat) most of the killing would continue. (Probably in excess of 99%.)

More about vegans: they primary need to think of themselves as being better humans and showing others their moral superiority…

Reminds me of the of deadly potential smoking of cigarettes. Have you noticed that say, 35 years ago, one very rarely encountered those who were allergic to tobacco smoke. Now, practically the majority of New Yorkers claim this malady. Why the change in incidence?

My guess is that what is really going on is that they either used to smoke themselves or never did and the real message to the smoker is: “you weak and irresponsible person still involved in that filthy and disgusting behavior — why aren’t you man (or, woman) enough to stop?”

[Hey… like it’s like…, really awesomely like addidctive…dude.]

Now you may envoke the dangers ‘second hand smoke.’ I, like Fran Lebowitz beleive that this is almost pure bs.’ It’s being used as in the main as propaganda to facillitate the prohibition of cigaretes in our country.

Curious: while doctors have alluded to the dangers of second hand smoke, I have never seen any statistics indicating the amount of risk. For smokers we know that (on average) about five years is subtracted from each smoker’s life.

To just say “risk,” there is probably a greater probability of getting hit by a car or bus when crossing the street.

#18 Emily,
The world does not denegrate meat eaters, it is actually the other way around. I am really glad that for at least two years now Ms. Parker-Pope has made the effort to include vegetarians and vegans in meal suggestions to her readers. As you can see by these comments, many people are most appreciateive and many, many who have commented are not denegrating meat eaters. I am always amazed at the anger, resentment and finger pointing and general snarking that is aimed at vegetarians and vegans and I just don’t why choosing a meat free diet causes such bad feelings from this segment of society.

Great article! I won’t be eating turkey this thanksgiving and it my first turkey-less thanksgiving. My aim toward conscious eating has influenced my family as well, and they bought a range-free turkey for our 16 guests. I saw some asked about vegan and why not eggs or milk? Well a brief answer to why vegans do give up those things, is because of the harsh reality of milk cows and hens, confined in a cages (chickens) and in stalls (milk cows) for their lives is not seen as right to some people, and so they choose not to support by forgoing eggs and dairy.

In addition to what Hannah said, what do you think they do with all of the male cows who are born on milk farms? As for chickens, just Google “chicken battery cages” and you might understand why a growing number of people choose to not eat eggs.